SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY. 
—— re 
perhaps a faint greenish tint, and having the aromatic odour of the 
Scottish fir. The non-volatile residue left in the still after rectification 
forms the extract of pine, which is used for an adjunct to baths, and is 
used on a considerable scale for this purpose. The mountains of 
Thuringia and Southern Germany have, for many years, been an impor- 
tant source of essential oil of pine. The principal tree employed there 
is Pinus pumilis. The leaves, &e., are collected at the end of May and 
the beginning of June, and distilled in large cylinders with a false 
bottom, through which steam is rapidly passed. In the Austrian Alps 
there is also a considerable industry in the distillation of pine needles. 
The white fir—Abies pectinata—is used for distillation purposes in the 
Tyrol and in Switzerland. The essential oil of this tree possesses a 
very pleasant odour. The oil from Picea excelsa is of such poor odow' 
that it is only useful for perfuming boot polishes and similar types of 
commodities. In the United States, the Government have for some 
years carried out a series of researches, with a view to determining the 
yield and composition of the yolatile oils obtained from the leaves of 
the more important pines growing in the States, in order to utilize 
to the best advantage the waste material of the lumber trade, and at 
the same time lessen the danger of forest fires. Small stills, holding 
about 400 Ibs. of the leaves, are taken to the necessary spots, and experi- 
mental distillation carried out. The apparatus consists of a copper 
cauldron, into which the chopped material is packed, with a grilled 
bottom, through which the stream enters. The distillation waters are 
repeatedly returned to the still, in order to obtain the maximum yield 
of the oil. The twigs and leaves are chopped up small, .and distillation 
usually commences about two or three hours after the fire is first 
lighted. The complete operation usually lasts from seven to eight 
hours, when the still is emptied, and a fresh charge introduced. The 
yields of oil obtained from the principal types of pine leaves experi- 
mented on are as follows :— 
Per cent. 
Pinus palustris o th .. 0.401 
Pinus heterophylla be 7 5 (yal 
Pinus ponderosa ay GAs ce, (haliby 
Pinus Lambertiana fee 4 .. 0.084 
Pinus sabiniana mre, ae .. 0.088 
Pinus contorta : re am .. 0.2384 
Pseudotsuga taxtfolia be oz Be OSL63 
Abies manifica x ie fees Ul 
Abies concolor de, 0.128 
The American industry is believed to have a big future before it.— 
Oil and Colour Trades Journal. 
JAPANESE EXPANSION. 
Recent developments in Japan which have brought about the large- 
scale commercial re-adjustment in that country are not to be viewed 
with great concern, according to a statement issued by the Guaranty 
Trust Company, of New York, but rather as a natural result of a very 
sudden industrial growth without full consideration of possible off-setting 
392 
